DBJ's Marian Gaborik post-mortem

Marian Gaborik was unloaded traded by the Columbus Blue Jackets to the Los Angeles Kings for forward Matt Frattin and some conditional picks.  

Kings uber-blogger The Royal Half asked me to pen a few words about Marian Gaborik for his readers, which I gladly did.  I share them with you here:

It was like it was but a year ago... 

"Marian Gaborik and his groin were traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets."   

And that's how it started.  We saw him but for a scant 34 games.  Sure, the Blue Jackets played 74 games while Gaborik was under contract here.  But, and it came not as a surprise, he missed 40 games due to injury.  That was the broken collarbone.  The one that made Gaborik sit out the Olympics. 

It gets better Kings Fan.  We in Columbus also experienced "the soreness" at the end of last season.  You know, the one that forced Gaborik to undergo abdominal surgery, rehab all summer, etc. 

So two killer injuries in 74 games.  34 games on the ice, at least 12 of which were played with guts held in by duct tape.  Consider yourself forewarned.  

That all said, I can almost guarantee you this: You will get teased by Marian Gaborik.  He still has an incredible burst of speed.  He still can shoot.  He still can avoid physical contact with the best wingers in the game (apparently with good reason).   

You will, at some point in this season, sit back, rub your eyes and ask, "Did he really do that?"  And you will see the Marian Gaborik of 2005-2006. 

And then Marian Gaborik promptly will get hurt. 

I wish Gaborik the best.  He's a classy guy.  He can be fun to watch.  He's also a walking M*A*S*H unit.  

So what about this Matt Frattin guy?